As much as I complain about being the only one to drop off and pick up the kids, truth be told, this is one of the highlights of my day. I love spending that extra hour in the car with them, listening to them jabber away about anything that cross their minds. Of course, there are times when they fight, and this would inevitably lead to screaming and/or tears, but for the most part, they get along and keep each other (and me) entertained.
In the mornings, the two of them often count the number of school buses they see on the road. Baby M has expanded this to include dump trucks (which is surprisingly a lot) and garbage trucks (he would also specify the color of said trucks). Big sister K treats it like a contest and often tries to spot the vehicles before her little brother does so that she can count it first. Then she likes to tell him how many school buses he's seen (and it’s never more than hers), to which he would respond, "NO, JEH JEH!" (jeh jeh = big sister in Chinese). She can be bossy at times, but he can totally hold his own ground and doesn’t let her get away with it.
On the way home is probably one of my favorite pastimes. I get to hear how their day went (at least from big sister K). The kids like to play pretend in the back seat... it's amazing where their imaginations take them. Lately, the game has been to pretend they’re at a restaurant. Sometimes they involve me in the game, other times they are content in playing with each other. Yesterday, big sister K took the role as the consumer and baby M was the restaurant owner. After determining there was no menu available, this is the conversation that followed:
Big sister K: Do you have any pineapples and apples?
Baby M: Yes.
Big sister K: Can I also get some pizza?
Baby M: With meat meat?
Big sister K: Umm… can I also have a salad?
Baby M: Lettuce?
Big sister K: Yes.
Baby M: It’s on sale.
I just started cracking up when I heard baby M say it’s on sale. I am going to miss this once big sister K starts camp for the summer and when we switch daycares for baby M. We haven't quite worked out the routine yet, but chances are, I won't have both drop-off and pick-up duty for both kids.
